Donna Smith is an employee at Mercy Hospital. For the last 18 years, she has sat across the table providing occupational therapy services for her patients. But soon she found herself on the other side of that table.

In June, Smith was at her doctor’s office for her annual physical. She sat on the examination table quite pleased with herself, as this was the last item on her bucket list for annual exams.

Her primary care provider came in and scanned the computer, reviewing the information from all her prior exams as she proudly informed him this exam was the last on her list. “But he shook his finger at me and said to me, ‘What about the colonoscopy?’” she recalls. “I was sure I was not due for that awful exam, but he told me that his records indicated I was!” She went home later that day and checked her own records to find her doctor was right. Much to Smith’s dismay, she was, in fact, due. “It was now my turn to sit on the patient side of the table,” she says.

Fearing the Worst“A colonoscopy is a difficult test for me, as I always get very sick from the anesthesia and it typically lasts for two days,” says Smith. The last time, Clark Kruta, CRNA, gave her some medication to stop the symptoms after the procedure, which helped, but she remained very weak the next day. “I was not looking forward to the prep and drinking that gallon of awful stuff and then being sick for two days,” she says. But Smith knew she had to complete the test, as cancer runs in her family. “I can’t take the risk of not scheduling the test,” she says. So, she reluctantly scheduled the exam and prepared for the worst.

Colonoscopy a Breeze at Mercy

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MercyInsightsHealth care’s bright spot

(continued on page 4)

WIN

TER 2014

One Pleasant Surprise After AnotherFrom start to finish, the experience was a pleasant one for Smith. The preparation drink had changed, as it was combined with Gatorade and it was only two 32-ounce bottles. Next, the results the liquid produced were not so harsh. Both were a welcomed relief for Smith.

“The next surprise I got was going to the procedure the next morning. I was checked in and the staff was awesome! They encouraged my husband to stay in the room with me while I waited for the procedure. The staff was very pleasant and friendly, explaining each step of the process and what I could expect,” says Smith.

Andrea Miller, RN, placed the IV line in, and Smith’s nurse was Annette Nielson, RN, who kept checking in to see if there was anything she needed. Kruta discussed

Donna Smith with her surgical team at Mercy Hospital

2 M e r c y I n s I g h t s

Mercy InsightsHealth care’s bright spot

w w w. m e r c y h o s p i t a l v a l l e y c i t y . o r g

You bank, buy your plane tickets, even share family photos online. And if you don’t already have access to your personal health information with the click of a mouse, chances are you soon will.

Understanding EMRsElectronic medical records (EMRs)—digital versions of the paper files your doctor keeps about your care—are becoming more common. About 72 percent of office-based U.S. physicians now use them. That’s up from 48 percent in 2009 and less than 20 percent in 2001.

Mercy’s Going DigitalMercy Hospital will be using the MEDITECH 6.0 system for their hospital-based EMRs.

The MEDITECH 6.0 project is part of Catholic Health Initiative’s (CHI) OneCare Program—a five-year investment in creating a shared, universal health record

for each patient. MEDITECH 6.0 is an electronic health record system that allows providers to share patient informa-tion and coordinate patient care across the health system.

The OneCare Program, including MEDITECH 6.0, is designed to:ff Improve patient safety and clinical outcomesffEnhance the patient experienceffProvide our providers and staff with the right tools and informationffEliminate duplication and waste

MEDITECH 6.0 also follows the other OneCare Program Guiding Principles of:ffBeing led by clinicians and powered by the Information Technology groupffBeing designed by the people who deliver careffBuilding one EMR system with evidence-based contentffActing according to our CHI Core Values

Are Your Health Records Wired?

in health care we have a problem. We call it acronymania, and it’s real. We get tired of saying the long version of something, so we attach an acronym to it. One of our latest is BCMA, or Bar Code Medica-tion Administration. Unfortunately, it doesn’t make a nice word, so we just say B-C-M-A. Perhaps you’ve seen it elsewhere, and soon you’ll see it right here at Mercy Hospital.

So What Is BCMA Exactly?BCMA means that before a nurse or health care provider gives you any medication, your wristband will be scanned as well as the medication be-ing administered. This helps to ensure that the right person is getting the right medication at the right time, so it is part of the “right” system of giv-ing medications. Currently, we are not using computers at the bedside when administering medications. Instead we do our checks with our brains and

paper patient charts. But never fear: We’ll still need our brains in a more computerized world … so don’t worry about that!

However, the funny thing about brains is that they can play games with you. Or maybe it’s your eyes that aren’t always able to convince your brain that they are seeing something different than what the brain expects. Either way, errors can be made when we have something called conforma-tion bias. This is when we perceive something to be different from real-ity. That’s where BCMA comes into play. A bar code on the package of a medication can’t be fooled. It is either correct or it is not.

Bringing BCMA to the BedsideAn enormous amount of effort is being spent preparing for a success-ful BCMA implementation at Mercy Hospital. We are reviewing our cur-rent processes and systems and are

planning for changes that will need to be made to start BCMA and con-tinue it successfully into the future. We recognize that in order to be successful, this BCMA system will require ongoing effort and refine-ment, and we embrace it as it will help enhance patient care.

BCMA a Player in Patient SafetyBCMA is just a part of a bigger con-cern in health care today: patient safety. Mark Neuenschwander, editor of CQInfo, states, “Bar code scanning is to medication safety what wearing seat-belts is to automobile safety. It is not the only thing, but it is a salient thing.”

There will never be a totally fail-safe world, even with technology advance-ments like BCMA. But this is a tool that we are going to use to help build a safer process for giving medications. So, embark on this journey with us to bring you safer medication therapy close to home, at Mercy Hospital.

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health news

Big Step in Patient Safety: Bar Code Medication Administration

by Amy Noeske, PharmD, RPh, Pharmacy Manager

Mercy InsightsNonprofit Org.

U.S. Postage

PAIDMercy Hospital

Mercy hospital570 chautauqua BoulevardValley city, nD 58072-3199

Mercy Insights is published as a community service for the friends and partners of Mercy hospital, 570 chautauqua Blvd., Valley city, nD 58072-3199, telephone 701-845-6400, www.mercyhospitalvalleycity.org.

Keith E. Heuser, Administrator

Information in Mercy InsIghts comes from a wide range of medical experts. If you have any concerns or questions about specific content that may affect your health, please contact your health care provider.

Models may be used in photos and illustrations.

copyright © 2013 10463M

Health care’s bright spot

As a patient-access representative, Patty Hollinshead is one of the first people guests see when they enter Mercy Hospital. She understands that visitors are sometimes worried, and she enjoys putting them at ease. “You try to make

the best first impression,” she says. “I like greeting them, registering them, and send-ing them off to the right departments.”

Hollinshead’s voice is also the first many callers hear, and she likes the problem solving involved with answering the hospital’s phones. “We answer questions, look up numbers, give advice about translators, and sometimes we even direct them to another hospital,” she says. “We try to help in any we can.”

Hollinshead has been with the hospital for four years. All four of her children were born at Mercy, so when she decided to re-enter the workforce, the hospital topped her list. “Mercy Hospital is unique to me in that every morning and every meeting we acknowledge our Heavenly Father,” she says. “We set a time aside before our busy day for a reflection and to honor our Lord. This is so important for me.”

Outside of work, she enjoys reading, spending time with family, and participat-ing in Bible study.

E m p l o y E E S p o t l i g h t

the procedure, and they discussed her sickness following the last procedure. “He decided to do some preventive medication after our discussion and administered it before the procedure. Then Dr. Kroetsch came in and explained the procedure in a simple manner that was very easy to under-stand and gave me and my husband the opportunity to ask any questions,” she recalls. “They were all very caring and professional as they prepared me for the procedure, and I was ready to go have it done.”

The “Worst” Never CameSmith went through the procedure without remembering a thing. “I was woken up by Clark, and I thought, ‘Oh boy, here comes the rough part.’” She returned to her room and didn’t feel too bad. Her husband was even surprised, observing she had color in her face.

“The nurse asked if I wanted some breakfast, and I told her that I would wait for 20 minutes to make sure I was OK. After 20 minutes my color con-tinued to improve and I didn’t have any nausea,” says Smith. She ordered her breakfast and ate it slowly, still feeling fine throughout the meal. Soon after, Dr. Kroetsch and Clark came to check on her and provide the results. “By 1 p.m. I was feeling great and ready to go home. I was so happy!”

After leaving the hospital, Smith and her husband stopped for lunch on their way home with plans to relax the remainder of the day. She and her husband waited for her to get sick, but it never happened. “I got up the next morning and I told my husband we should go and do some-thing since I had the day off anyway. He looked at me, still unsure, and I said I felt great,” Smith says.

“I was so pleased with the staff at Mercy Hospital and would rec-ommend them for anyone who needs a colonoscopy. The staff is very professional, and Dr. Kroetsch was very gentle and had a great bedside manner. If you’re like me and you get sick from the anesthesia, just openly discuss your concerns with Clark, and he will do his best to make sure you have a good experience. I am living proof of that!”

Colonoscopy a Breeze at Mercy (continued from page 1)

Patty Hollinshead

To schedule a colonoscopy, have your primary care provider call Mercy Hospital at 701-845-6522.